Best Halloween Movies: 14 creepy horror flicks to stream this Hallow

Halloween Streaming Guide UK: All the best Halloween movies, films and shows to stream yourself stupid this Hallow's eve, across all the major streaming platforms and TV channels from Netflix and Amazon Prime Video to Now TV, BBC iPlayer and more.

Halloween – the perfect time of the year to forget the terrifying state of the world by terrifying ourselves with some spooky streaming picks.

Trouble is, the amount of content on offer has reached frankly overwhelming levels, making it difficult to pick the perfect film to ensure you don’t sleep for the next five nights.

Luckily, you’ve got TrustedReviews to help you exhume the creepiest on-demand content from the increasingly overcrowded streaming cemetery this Halloween.

We’ve scoured all the streaming services on offer to unearth the best stuff, along with a few picks for those of you still limited to the terrestrial channels (now there’s a terrifying prospect). So, read on for our full guide.

1) It Follows

Available on: Amazon Prime Instant Video

You may have missed this one, as it wasn’t given a wide theatrical release, but it’s a certified hit among critics. It Follows is a tense horror offering, made all the more impressive for being made on an independent film budget.

So what’s it all about? Well, the whole thing centres on college student Jaime, who’s dealing with the usual issues that girls in their late teens have to negotiate: college life, boys, and a relentless supernatural entity intent upon ending her life. How does a girl get herself into such a pickle? By sleeping with some guy who wants to pass the curse on to her, of course.

The film follows Jaime as she's pursued by all manner of creepy-looking individuals, who happen to be invisible to those around her and will dispatch her in a gruesome fashion if they manage to get their hands on her. Does she manage to rid herself of the worst STD in history? Check this one out on Amazon Instant Video to find out.

2) Poltergeist

Available on: Amazon Prime Instant Video

This one should need no introduction, but if you happen to be a member of the millenial generation you might well be unaware of a time before Paranormal Activity.

If so, don’t worry, it’s not your fault. Seen Stranger Things? Well, that whole show was based on a time in our history known as ‘the 80s’ – a decade when music was awful, Trump was just a heavily indebted real estate executive, and Steven Spielberg was yet to ruin Indiana Jones with pointless sequels.

And one of the era’s finest horror flicks is Poltergeist – produced, and according to some directed, by Spielberg himself. It mixes terrible special effects (though they were impressive for their time) with a narrative that involves children being menaced by malicious spirits, while somehow managing to inhabit that wholesome 80s vibe that seems to accompany films from that era when viewed in retrospect. It's like ET with more melting faces and cadavers. Give it a go!

3) The Conjuring

Available on: Amazon Prime Instant Video

Apparently this one’s based on a ‘true story’. Considering it’s about some paranormal investigators who specialise in evil spirits that try to possess the living, we’re slightly sceptical about its basis in reality. But that doesn’t mean it won’t scare the bejesus out of you.

The Conjuring is light on the gore, but it’s heavy on the suspense, and should keep you awake for several nights after viewing.

And those most discerning of critics, the Amazon customers, can’t get enough. Among the reviews, this anonymous submission stands out as particularly insightful: “Wow! One of the best, most believable horrors I've seen in a long time. I absolutely S**T my pants watching this. Can't wait to see Conjuring II”. Our favourite, however is from Jan Roberts, who gave the film a full five stars along with her terse summation of the feature: “Not Watched”.

4) The Babadook

Available on: Netflix

The Babadook is a horror which manages to be a bit clever. It’s about single mother Amelia, who lives with her six-year-old son Sam. The dad died in a horrible and violent car crash years ago and as Sam gets older and becomes increasingly volatile, Amelia finds it more and more difficult to hold it together.

It doesn’t help that Sam, who might get on your nerves a bit, keeps talking about ‘The Babadook’, and once a mysterious book depicting some pretty disturbing events shows up in the house, things get downright freaky.

If you like your horror cerebral and your kids irritating then this is for you. The conclusion is a bit silly but if you get symbolism and all that then you might find The Babadook a satisfying watch.

5) The Crow

Available on: Now TV

The Crow may well have become infamous for the sad on-set events that led to lead actor Brandon Lee’s untimely death, but it’s worth a watch for its unique take on the neo-noir style.

Set during Halloween, the film begins with the murder of rock star Eric Draven and his fiancée. Naturally Draven is resurrected by a crow so that he can claim revenge on the crime lord whose thugs slaughtered him and his beloved.

It’s not a horror in the traditional sense, but it’s dark and creepy enough to warrant a watch this Hallow's eve.

6) The Shining

Another classic from the 80s, this time without the Spielbergian charm and with plenty of Kubrick’s masterful auteurism. If you haven’t seen this one by now, it’s way past time to take the plunge.

Even if you’re yet to sample the chilling nightmare that is Kubrick’s The Shining, you’ve likely heard enough about it to know the drill. Caretaker Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) takes his family up to the isolated Overlook Hotel while he tends to the grounds during the winter off-season. He then proceeds to go insane, a process portrayed a little too well by Nicholson. And the kid is creepy as hell, too.

Look, it’s a classic, so make it a point this Halloween to finally acquaint yourself with the The Shining.

Jimmy Stewart plays retired detective John "Scottie" Ferguson, who’s hired by his old friend Gavin Elster to look into his wife’s strange behaviour, which Elster claims is down to some sort of possession. The rest of the film features a lot of Stewart looking confused while things get decidedly weird.

Hitchcock managed to refine the sense of unease he was a master of to a perfect point with Vertigo. The sense that’s something’s off, maintained throughout, might not be as viscerally unsettling as the stuff you’ll find in modern horror, but it’ll stay with you long after Stewart has given his final bewildered look to camera.

8) The Addams Family

Available on: Netflix

It doesn’t all have to be serious scares this Halloween. Why not take some time to visit your old friends The Addams Family? The whole gang’s waiting on Netflix to welcome you back to this early-90s take on the cartoon of the same name.

As one Netflixer gushes on the reviews section: “The sets are amazing, the actors are fantastic, this film is so much fun. Christopher Lloyd is amazing as Uncle Fester, This is an absolute classic.” We couldn’t have put it better ourselves.

The Addams Family provides you with the perfect option for when your pesky family are hanging around this Halloween, and you need something that isn’t going to scar the kids for life or give nan an aneurysm.

9) Scary Movie

Available on: Netflix

Sticking with the whole ‘Halloween movies don’t have to be scary’ thing, Netflix is offering you the chance to relive the Wayans brothers' finest moment with Scary Movie. The humour ain’t for everyone, but this 2000 horror spoof will hold a special place in the hearts of those who were going through adolescence at the time and found the jokes appealing.

The film spawned four sequels, so it must have been good, right? Either way, why not stick this one on to give yourselves a respite between The Conjuring and The Shining?

10) Let Me In

Available on: Netflix

Ooo, here’s a good’un. Based on the Swedish film Let The Right One In, Let Me In tells the story of a vampire girl (Chloë Grace Moretz) who befriends meek 12-year-old Owen in 1980s New Mexico. Owen is the victim of repeated bullying at his school but with his new-found friendship, the tables are about to turn.

While the Swedish one is better, the US remake manages to keep much of what made the original awesome. If nothing else, it’s worth watching for the brutal scene towards the end where the bullies finally get what’s coming to them.

11) Hotel Transylvania

One for the kids, Hotel Transylvania is showing on ITV 2, which means you can watch it live online using the ITV Hub service. It’s showing from 7.05pm on Halloween, so head over to the hub and park the kids in front of this animated offering from Sony Pictures.

The film tells the tale of Dracula, who entertains all manner of mythical figure from the Invisible Man to Frankenstein at his Hotel Transylvania, providing a refuge from the intolerant outside world. Then, a hitchhiker named Jonathan shows up and Dracula’s daughter takes a liking to the newcomer. There’s undoubtedly some uplifting denouement here somewhere so you can rest assured the kids will love it.

12) Addams Family Values

Watched The Addams Family on Netflix? Well Channel 4’s got the sequel, and it’s showing it at 3.50pm this Sunday, which means you can stream it live using the online player.

This time the Addams are welcome a new baby boy, much to the dismay of siblings Wednesday (Christina Ricci) and Pugsley (Jimmy Workman). And while the two do all they can to get rid of the new addition, the nanny Debbie Jelinsky (Joan Cusack) has some nefarious plans of her own.

It’s not gonna scare you like some of the entries on this list, but it’s another great family-viewing option that doesn’t require a subscription.

13) Hocus Pocus

Here’s a classic that you can’t find on Amazon or Netflix. Film4 is showing the beloved early-90s Disney classic Hocus Pocus, which features the three witches Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy.

It might be intended as a family film, and it certainly manages to hit the right tone in that respect, but Hocus Pocus has a few moments that might well have scared you as a kid, such as when Winifred raises her former lover Billy Butcherson from the grave to chase down the kids trying to stop the witches becoming immortal.

Catch this one with the family online by using Channel 4’s live TV viewer. It’ll probably be on catch-up too, via the Film4 site.

14) The Human Centipede

Available on: Netflix

Trick or Treat! It’s those bloody kids again, and you’re sick of having to hand out free food thanks to this American tradition seeping across the Atlantic. Well, why not invite the neighbourhood kids in and sit ‘em in front of this notorious horror entry from Dutch filmmaker Tom Six?

You might well face some sort of legal proceedings for unleashing the twisted nightmare that is The Human Centipede on the fragile psyches of the local youth, but you’ll certainly make sure no parents let their kids near your bloody doorbell again!

So there you have it, enough terrifying content to keep you up for days. Got any other suggestions? Make sure to leave them in the comments.

Watch The Refresh: The best tech gossip and reviews every week

Let us know what your favourite film to watch on Halloween is in the comments.

Free Newsletter

Get TrustedReviews' award-winning reviews, opinions and advice delivered to your inbox for free!

By submitting your details, you'll also receive emails from Time Inc. UK, publisher of Trusted Reviews and
other iconic brands about its goods and services, and those of its carefully selected third parties.

Please tick here if you'd prefer not to hear about:

Time Inc.'s goods & services, including all the latest news, great deals and offers

Free Newsletter

Get TrustedReviews' award-winning reviews and advice delivered to your inbox for free!

By submitting your details, you'll also receive emails from Time Inc. UK, publisher of Trusted Reviews and
other iconic brands about its goods and services, and those of its carefully selected third parties.

Please tick here if you'd prefer not to hear about:

Time Inc.'s goods & services, including all the latest news, great deals and offers